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Something other than Shaving

post #1 of 10
3/8/11 at 10:42am
Thread Starter 
Hi, I have a long haired cat and while her fur is maintained (not matted and such) she sheds ALOT and I simply dont have the time to brush her as much as I'd like. I'm considering shaving her but feel almost as if that is too drastic and am wondering if you can get the fur trimmed instead? We live in Las Vegas but she is an indoor cat so temperature wise she stays fine, her fur has just gotten so long that I need an easy alternative to reduce the shedding. Is trimming or thinning out the fur a possibility? Or is shaving better?
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post #2 of 10
3/8/11 at 12:04pm
What does your cat eat? The food plays a big part in keeping the coat in good condition. You could try to add some salmon oil to her diet if you haven't done that already. It will reduce the shedding and the condition of the coat gets better. Bathing her every now and then will also help to get rid of the dead hairs.
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post #3 of 10
3/8/11 at 5:42pm
I now have a long-haired cat again... And the shedding is coming on strong with Spring coming. I also use salmon oil for my pets and it does wonders for their coats, but I still have lots of shedding going on. I used to have a long-haired cat that I shaved every year in the Spring. The lion cut, she looked adorable.... I was a groomer so I knew how to do this. It was so helpful with cutting down on the shedding and hair. She absolutely hated being brushed and got very angry about. She lived till nineteen years of age and always had her lion cut style. and loved it. I am planning on bathing my cats very soon and try to remove some of their winter coats. As for thinning or trimming, never did that, I always either brushed and brushed or just shaved.
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post #4 of 10
3/9/11 at 6:12am
I don't know the technical groomers' term in English but I know several cat owners who get their cats "plucked" every now and then. The groomer plucks out the undercoat by hand.

http://www.lekkerinmijnkattenvel.nl/plukken.htm
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post #5 of 10
3/9/11 at 7:57am
I'm surprised no one has yet mentioned the Furiminator (sp?). It is always so highly recommended by others here for the problem you are having.

I haven't brought one yet, though I may soon. Best price is on Amazon, apparently.

I have 2 long haired cats. I don't have shedding problems with them though, for some reason. I do have a few tumbleweed like tufts on the floor I pick up daily.

I have a groomer coming soon to deal with their mats, which aren't too bad, but I don't want them to get worse. I'll be asking her what grooming tools she recommends.

My experience with cats and dogs that had to be shaved is that it upsets some of them. They act like they are ashamed or humiliated. So I want to avoid that.

Robin
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post #6 of 10
3/9/11 at 8:07am
I was wondering this too!
Google HATES being brushed... and by hates it I mean he would rather kill you than allow you to brush his stomach... we can get his back but it involves feeding him and brushing quickly!
We have a furminator and absolutely love it! Works wonders on Joey! But Google still hates it! I am seriously debating on getting him a Lion Cut at least for spring, but he has such pretty fur!
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post #7 of 10
3/9/11 at 9:30am
I guess I'm really lucky. Larry loves to be brushed, which is good, because I do it every other day.

I've been thinking of getting the Furminator, because I've heard such good things about it, and I know I leave fur behind after brushing that will end up on everything.

And I don't vacuum as much as I should.
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post #8 of 10
3/9/11 at 1:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bastetservant View Post
I'm surprised no one has yet mentioned the Furiminator (sp?). It is always so highly recommended by others here for the problem you are having.

Robin
I don't know what kind of texture the op's cat's coat is, but I can tell you that furminator isn't that suitable for my longhairs. Would be worth to try though.
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post #9 of 10
3/9/11 at 1:55pm
I agree I have three long hair cats, one that is much longer with a thick double coat. The furminator does nothing for him, works well on the other two though, they have a single coat.

Leslie
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post #10 of 10
3/9/11 at 7:15pm
The furminator is a great tool for short-haired cats. For long-haired cats it just tears the coat out, I have not had luck with that on the long-haired cats. I used to be a groomer of cats/dogs many moons ago. The slicker brush works better for long-haired cats. Just used slicker brush and comb. But is the cat was matted then a shave was in order. Cat's skin is so very thin and trying to get the mats out is very painful. As far as the lion cut, we did that alot for people who absolutely could not brush their long-haired cats. You don't have to go short on the body as long as they are not matted to the skin, we used #7 blades or even #5 blades so the coat is still about 1/2 inch or more. Some people prefer the #10 or even shorter #15 blade. I personally think they look adorable with the lion trim and alot of the cats just love it when all of that unmanageable hair is gone, they feel all fresh and frisky too
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